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Wednesday, 7 September 2016

Melbourne startup KKDU Plum has just unveiled their brand new website, in which their very clever Bike Trailer and Rack are showcased.

Charlwood Design recently had the pleasure of working with startup KKDU Plum to develop what we think is the best bike trailer on the market today. This is a great example of someone identifying a solution and doing something about it- and a great inspiration for someone planning to dive into the scary world of the startups!

Founders Astrid and Haydn Sharratt came knocking on our big blue door about 2 years ago with a dream of developing a combined bike trailer and shopping trolley. The initial brief was a bike trailer that could carry all your "stuff"- and easily detach to be taken into the supermarket/shopping centre/market/beach/park/etc. Easy, no?

A page from the first concept presentation.

Well, as with most product development stories, there were plenty of hurdles. First issue was nailing the aesthetics. The "pram" aesthetic was briefly explored- and just as quickly abandoned. Plastic wheels were dismissed very early on. And rolled tubular steel was favoured over aluminum extrusion, to provide a more traditional look. It was very quickly established that this trailer needed to look perfectly at home being pulled behind something like a Pashley, or wandering the aisles of Prahran Market.

An early prototype. As with many projects, we find Water-Knifed Plywood to be a great method of creating mock-ups.

Ergonomically speaking, the trailer needed to not only suit all bike sizes; but also all users. The solution was an incredibly easy to adjust handle that also doubles as the hitching location. The handle rotates up and down to suit a variety of heights of both users and bikes, and connects to a very neat little hitch hanging off the custom bike rack. This also allows for a push or pull configuration when removed from the bike. The rack itself has a multitude of length and height adjust-ability to fit onto most adult bikes, and is an amazing product in its own right.

Head over to the new website to have a look at all the other features. From there you can register your interest and keep up to date with release dates and more.

Wednesday, 17 August 2016

BAT Logic were recently proud to announce that their ShoePlate Pro foot plate was installed in a total of 1 Gold, 6 Silver and 1 Bronze medal winning boats at the 2016 Rio Olympics Rowing events.

The BAT Logic team have been developing the innovative ShoePlate Pro QuickRelease foot plate for the past few years, and have seen the devices installed in boats worldwide.

The click in-click out system offers rowers increased performance by enhancing leg muscle use, reducing injury through better gluteal control and enhanced stability and connection. Additionally, it also allows the user to click in and out of boats or ergometers and retain their own shoes and settings- contributing to not only an easier to use system, but also improved hygiene.

BAT Logic approached Charlwood Design to re-develop the click in and out function of the foot plate, as well as consult on material selection, tooling design and manufacturing decisions.

The end result has seen positive results worldwide, and has been installed on many winning boats at various competitions and regattas. The BAT Logic team have been tirelessly representing their product at most events, and the results speak for themselves.

The Rio Olympics saw several medals won by teams using BAT Logic products, with the final tally as follows:

Sunday, 29 May 2016

Smart Home Irrigation company and previous client of Charlwood Design, Hydrawise, has recently been acquired by irrigation giant Hunter Industries.

The news is fantastic for the Australian technology start up, who specialises in Wi-Fi controlled, smart irrigation systems.

Charlwood Design were approached by Hydrawise back in 2013 to re-design their controller housing. Hydrawise had previously been using an OTS housing for their main controller unit, but after experiencing some growth, felt they needed to create something unique to represent the same level of intelligence and sophistication that their software and system design displayed.

The brief was to create a simple, low cost, water resistant housing that stood out from the competitors and was easy to install. The finished product met all criteria, and helped boost Hydrawise sales three fold.

Congratulations to both Hydrawise and Hunter Industries, we look forward to what the future holds!

Monday, 2 May 2016

Charlwood Design has finally jumped onto Instagram!

You will now be able to keep up to date with project releases, news, staff insights, inspiration, event information, manufacturing processes, job offers and more via our Instagram. The whole purpose is to provide you with a bit of an insight into the Charlwood Design studio, by showing you what we do, what we like and who we are.

Search Charlwood Design on Instagram or follow this link to go to our page. And be sure to follow us to keep to up to date with everything!

Wednesday, 11 November 2015

The studio had some great news this week with design student Sarah Heimeier's project developed for a Charlwood Design lead studio with RMIT university industrial design winning the National prize for the James Dyson Award.

The studio focused on future healthcare innovations and Sarah's device, Jana is a wearable ultrasonic sensor that can monitor an expectant mother and baby’s heartbeat, blood pressure and glucose levels with a focus on helping rural families get better levels of care.

Charlwood Design has now been involved with three semesters with RMIT focusing on connected healthcare, with Paul Charlwood recently giving feedback and insights to the students on their ideas. He was very impressed with the exceptionally high standard of work that came out of an empathetic design process.